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Rubio’s Media Swag

There is a reason people unofficially call the media the fifth branch of government. Unless you’re watching CSPAN or reading Senators’ and Congressmen’s press releases, many find out all their news from the news. Furthermore, in a time where journalists have become more of a voter influence than an objective viewpoint, the politician’s appeal to the media is even more important than ever. For this reason, Senator Marco Rubio and his media fan base is a huge advantage.

Popular comedian/news commentator Jon Stewart in fact came to Rubio’s defense last night, in response to the recent New York Time’s articles that speak about Rubio’s parking tickets (4 in the past year), and his easy mistake of over stretching his budget to buy three homes and a boat. While this information really does not pertain to Rubio’s time as a politician, Stewart came to the senator’s defense, laughing at the “front page news.” In the recent articles that have portrayed Hillary Clinton as a self made millionaire from her speech fees, it seems as if the left wing news outlets are trying to condemn the Florida senator as well. Stewart came to Rubio’s defense, quickly deflating the argument and laughing at the New York Times “journalism.” MSNBC has also tried to pin Rubio down, publishing an article “Marco Rubio’s ‘house of horrors.'”

This has not been the only time Rubio has come in favor with media personalities. There have been numerous artless from the Washington Post on how Rubio can save the GOP, and how if you hear him speak, you may fall victim to his charm and change your point of view regarding the presidential hopeful. Many moderate journalists have published articles questioning whether Rubio can sway voters and fix the immigration problem, while more far right personalities (Limbaugh and Ann Coulter) have condemned his immigration reform.

The media coverage of Rubio is one of intense like in the middle, of dislike of the far right and left, and for this, he has an advantage. While elections focus on the 7 % independent vote, Rubio can appeal to this base through his favor with these sources. Jon Stewart’s defense, is definitely a win.